Scientists expected the north polar region of Enceladus to be heavily cratered, based on low-resolution images from the Voyager mission, but the new high-resolution Cassini images show a landscape of stark contrasts.

Scientists, engineers and students from around the world gathered in Jerusalem Oct. 12-16 for the 66th International Astronautical Congress. Civil space is at a turning point, with ambitious new plans unfolding as old ones bear fruit. Senior space editor Frank Morring, Jr., and Paris Bureau Chief Amy Svitak took a moment to describe what they learned about the changes at this year’s IAC.

Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) says the return-to-flight mission of its Falcon 9 rocket will lift 11 second-generation machine-to-machine satellites for Orbcomm, rather than SES-9.

Here is Aviation Week’s exclusive, behind-the-scenes look at the new Sbirs ops center and why it is ushering in an “explosion” of new ways to use overhead infrared data for intelligence and civil, war operations.

Israel’s growing space economy looks beyond limited domestic markets in telecom, Earth observation and science as it expands into international commercial business.

House to vote on Ex-Im Bank at last. Army studies Russian UAV ops in Ukraine. NASA plans for a return to the Moon in the long run. And the State Department prepares to sell Black Hawks to Saudi Arabia.

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden says the congressionally mandated U.S. ban preventing space cooperation with China is “temporary.”

Internecine warfare within the House Republican caucus is exacerbating the budget politics that complicated NASA’s Mars mission planning.